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How to Open the World's Heaviest Door
For 35 years, the Energy Department has pursued an all-of-the-above energy strategy — and the critical work done at the National Labs has helped put America at the top of the global clean energy race. This photo from 1979 shows a Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory employee opening the world's heaviest hinged door, which was eight feet thick, nearly twelve feet wide, and weighed 97,000 pounds. A special bearing in the hinge allowed a single person to open or close the concrete-filled door, which was used to shield the Rotating Target Neutron Source-II (RTNS-II) -- the world’s most intense source of continuous fusion neutrons. Scientists from around the world used it to study the properties of metals and other materials that could be used deep inside fusion power plants envisioned for the next century.
Image: Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Date taken: Fri, 08/24/2012 - 10:36
1 of 11How to Open the World's Heaviest Door
For 35 years, the Energy Department has pursued an all-of-the-above energy strategy — and the critical work done at the National Labs has helped put America at the top of the global clean energy race. This photo from 1979 shows a Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory employee opening the world's heaviest hinged door, which was eight feet thick, nearly twelve feet wide, and weighed 97,000 pounds. A special bearing in the hinge allowed a single person to open or close the concrete-filled door, which was used to shield the Rotating Target Neutron Source-II (RTNS-II) -- the world’s most intense source of continuous fusion neutrons. Scientists from around the world used it to study the properties of metals and other materials that could be used deep inside fusion power plants envisioned for the next century.
Image: Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Date taken: 08/24/2012 - 10:36
2 of 11Fan-tastic
In Jonesboro, Arkansas, a Nordex USA employee stands between utility-scale components that will eventually make up a completed wind turbine. Under the Recovery Act, Nordex USA received a tax credit to assist in the creation of the Jonesboro manufacturing facility, which opened in October 2010.
Image: Nordex USA
Date taken: 08/17/2012 - 10:40
3 of 11Mars Curiosity
On Monday, August 6, 2012, NASA's Curiosity rover arrived on the surface of Mars to gather geological and environmental data to determine if the planet has ever had the potential to support life. This photo was taken by a navigation camera located toward the back-left of the Curiosity rover, and features part of the rover's nuclear <a href="/node/381709" target="_blank">power supply</a>. Beyond the rover itself, Curiosity's exploration reveals the desert-like terrain of Mars's Gale Crater.
Image: NASA/JPL-Caltech
Date taken: 08/10/2012 - 13:32
4 of 11Environmental Remediation at Los Alamos National Lab
A worker suppresses dust during the final demolition stages of the historic DP West site, located at Los Alamos National Laboratory’s (LANL) Technical Area 21. The demolition was funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) and is part of $212 million in ARRA funds the Lab received for environmental remediation.
Image: Los Alamos National Laboratory
Date taken: 08/03/2012 - 13:29
5 of 11Floating Robots
UC Berkeley engineering student Jerome Thai launches one of 100 floating sensors into the Sacramento River. The Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta’s channel system supports California's agricultural industry and provides drinking water for 22 million Californians. The Floating Sensor Network project is a collaborative effort between the Center for Information Technology Research in the Interest of Society (CITRIS), Berkeley Lab and its National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center (NERSC), and UC Berkeley’s Departments of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Electrical Engineering. The project will collect data to help researchers and scientists better understand how water flows from the Delta to pumping stations and the San Francisco Bay. To learn more, check out the Floating Sensor Network's <a href="http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/05/09/floating-sensors-track-delta-water-flow/" target="_blank">press release</a>.
Image: Roy Kaltschmidt
Date taken: 07/27/2012 - 12:28
6 of 11Blades of Glory
Jonathan Wiley and Eric Kuntzelman rappel more than 300 feet off the ground from a 3 megawatt wind turbine at the National Wind Technology Center (NWTC) near Boulder, CO. The Energy Department has made significant investments in wind testing facilities like the NWTC. By supporting the testing and validation of newly developed technologies, we are working to reduce costs for manufacturers, speed deployment of next generation technologies, and promote the growth of American companies. To learn more, check out our blog <a href="http://energy.gov/articles/blades-glory-wind-technology-bringing-us-closer-clean-energy-future">Blades of Glory: Wind Technology Bringing Us Closer to a Clean Energy Future</a>.
Image: Dennis Schroeder (NREL)
Date taken: 07/20/2012 - 14:28
7 of 11An insider look at Secretary Chu's tour of Ingeteam
Department of Energy Secretary Steven Chu visited Ingeteam, based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on Thursday, July 12. During the visit, he toured the facilities that produce wind power generators and converters, in addition to PV solar inverters. In this photo he looks at a Stator 2MW Wind Turbine Generator.
Image: Pat A. Robinson
Date taken: 07/13/2012 - 16:32
8 of 11Celebrating the Higgs boson
More than 200 Fermilab researchers and staffers crowded into an auditorium at 2 a.m. EDT July 4 waited for the results of the latest announcement regarding the Higgs boson. When CERN Director-General Rolf-Dieter Heuer said the words - "I think we have it" – the Fermilab crowd erupted into applause. Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory and Brookhaven National Laboratory are the host laboratories for the U.S. contingents of the Large Hadron Collider experiments that found the Higgs boson-like particle.
Image: Public Affairs, Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory
Date taken: 07/06/2012 - 12:45
9 of 11Biofilm for Carbon Capture
This slice can help sequester carbon. The x-ray microtomography image shows a slice of biofilm grown on a porous hollow fiber (500 microns in diameter). By working with the chemical and physical interactions of biofilms, we can gain insight into how microorganisms can help sequester carbon, reducing environmental impact. This photo was submitted to Pacific Northwest National Lab's 2012 Science as Art Contest by Mathew Thomas and the Systems Toxicology Group. Receiving the most likes on Facebook, this photo won the People's Choice award and will appear in the Lab's 2013 Calendar.
Image: Mathew Thomas and the Systems Toxicology Group, PNNL
Date taken: 06/29/2012 - 16:36
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Installing Solar Panels
Brian Lawson and Kenesaw Burwell install solar panels at the Energy Department's Research Support Facility -- a highly efficient building at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden, Colorado.
Image: Dennis Schroeder, NREL
Date taken: 06/04/2012 - 10:49
11 of 11The Big Green Bus Visits the Energy Department
The Big Green Bus visited the Energy Department and Secretary Chu this Tuesday. Ten Dartmouth students are touring the nation on the Big Green Bus to build enthusiasm for community involvement through environmental action. This is the 8th year this completely student run initiative has hit the road to travel 12,000 miles across 24 states on a reused, veggie-powered Greyhound bus.
Image: Justin Vandenbroeck, Energy Department
Date taken: 06/22/2012 - 12:22
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